We Fought This War & Won
by Sky Slayer
Summary: V-Day Fic; "This was a long, long war that was filled with pain and misery. Filled with nightly tears and heartache. But in the end, it was all worth it. We, us, were worth it."


**A/N: People on Tumblr know how hard I worked on this, dear lord. Why would I do this to myself? D: Anyways, Happy Valentine's Day! Have some good ol' Jerza because our fandom is a quiet family that gifs and edits and draws and writes for each other over what small moments we are given (as of late, NONE). The Tumblr Jerza Fam is amazing, the shippers there are all so lovely (: Anyways, yes, enjoy! Two mini poems/one large poem thrown in there as well, I hope you enjoy all of it. Have a safe, love-filled holiday!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail.**

* * *

_This fire burns bright_

_Fuelled by our strength_

_I will keep us going when despair befalls_

_For I am your guardian angel and you are mine_

_We will fight through the pain and deceit_

_We will forever stand strong_

_Reaching for the stars_

_Lifting each other high_

_We will fight all of our demons_

_Together forever, my love._

* * *

It wasn't a normal day in the infamous guild-hall of our beloved Fairy Tail. No, no, no...it was the goddamn Apocalypse (by the terms of anyone you could've asked that day, who wasn't a white-haired barmaid with a sadistic side or an oblivion dragon slyer/celestial mage duo). Not induced by a dark guild, or a demonic being...well, scratch out the latter; Mirajane Strauss, on Valentine's Day, could be considered a demonic being, _without _her Satan Soul form. Hence why the majority of the guild spent the day hiding in discrete places, such as underground or other cities, save for those who considered themselves strong even to fight against her wrath. You must be wondering why they would go through with such desperate measures; well, to say the_ least_, nobody wanted to be a pawn in Mira's scary matchmaking schemes.

Unfortunately, by doing what they did every year, they played right into her latest plan.

Gajeel and Levy were trapped in the library with no means of getting out.

Gray and Juuvia were out on a mission at a fancy resort, and had been given three extra days to relax.

Natsu and Lucy would play right into her hands.

And Erza...had been a trouble, but it had worked out in the end.

Lucy, being the one of the newest of the core group and the one who rarely knew what was going on within the infrastructure of her beloved family, hadn't been warned prior to the 14th about the horrific monstrosity of the guild's beloved barmaid on the couple's day. _That _resulted in her waking up on the 14th, getting ready, and plodding over to the guild hall per usual. She expected to find everyone there already, fighting and destroying things like they usually did.

At the same time, across town in a homely yet messy house, our rosette dragon slayer was also making his way over to the guild hall.

"I don't see why nobody's ever there on the 14th," he was grumbling to the blue cat beside him, remembering all the years before in which he'd been lonely with no one to spend the day with. "It's just Mira acts all weird, but she's _always_ weird. Right Happy?"

"Aye!" The cat snickered mentally, knowing fully well that Lucy would also be at the guild. _I can't wait to sit back with a fish and enjoy what Mira put together for them..._

As they crossed through the streets in the direction of their guild, they could only hope their favourite blonde would also be in the guild today, rather than hide away like her friends were no doubt doing. Both for two completely different reasons, though.

Of course, as they approached the hall's door, they saw the familiar side ponytail bobbing up and down as it's owner walked.

"Lucy!" Natsu was happy that his best friend was going to be there; at least he'd finally have someone to spend the day with!

Said person, at the sound of his voice, turned in his direction, flashing him one of her beautiful smiles. Pausing, he mulled over that thought again; why was he suddenly considering his best friend's smile to be beautiful? I mean, it was clear as day she was pretty, but...why so suddenly? Shaking his head and frowning in confusion, he raced over to Lucy's side and grinned at her, shoving his prior thoughts away.

Lucy couldn't help but laugh at how innocent her partner was, greeting him just as enthusiastically as he greeted her. Thankfully, he hadn't crashed over at her place that night; though it felt weird not to have the fire-breather as a lump on the couch, it felt nice to have her apartment back to herself.

The duo entered, and were met by empty tables and a quiet room. Lucy was startled by the sight, but Natsu had seen it coming. What he _hadn't _seen coming was the trio standing at the bar, talking to Mira. They were heavily cloaked from what they could see, and one of them was in a very familiar getup.

"Jellal! Ultear! Meredy!" Natsu crowed, grinning and running up to them. They faced him at the sudden sound of his voice, smiles gracing their features, but Lucy could tell something else was preoccupying Jellal's mind. Was it something Mira said? Or was it a certain redhead who wasn't present? She and Happy shared a grin, knowing either one had something to do with Erza.

"What're you doing here?" Lucy asked, curiously, as she walked over to where her partner was trying to convince Jellal to fight with him. However, before the bluenette could reply with what could only be a lie, Ultear jumped in, a smirk curving her lips. She was _not _about to miss out on the chance to dish out some gossip about her brotherly figure.

"Lover boy here got a message from Mira-san telling him that Erza had gotten severely injured on a mission," she explained, cackling. "He wouldn't even let us take a break, instead he almost ran us into the ground in his haste to come over."

Jellal was glad he had Mystogan's mask, because his cheeks reddened to the point where they were competing with the colour of Erza's hair. Glaring at Ultear and silently telling her he'd get her back for this, he turned back to Mira, blatantly ignoring Lucy and Happy's giggling. He knew that he and his duo troublemakers had missed the warmth that every guild member radiated, and couldn't stop the carefree smile from gracing his lips. Of course, they couldn't see it. "So, she's at home?"

The white-haired barmaid smiled sweetly. Anybody who knew her would've said the smile was sickly, a sure sign of danger. _Phase 1, complete, _she cackled to herself. _You can thank me at the wedding, Erza!_ "Yes, she is. Go on right ahead."

Lucy watched, amused, as Jellal walked out of the guild speedily despite the rather constricting pants, heading towards the girls' dormitory. She had no doubt in her mind that Erza was indeed fine and Mira was simply tired of their 'friendship' act; those two so had a thing for each other, that much was obvious to everyone who has seem them interact in any sort of way. _I wonder how much time before wedding bells, _she mused with a smile as she watched Natsu talk happily with Mira, who commented on everything he was saying without missing a beat. _Those two are too different from a normal couple for it to take a few years. A few months maybe? I might even bet on a few weeks... _

Her thoughts were interrupted by Natsu, who, in his haste to grab his breakfast, slammed into Lucy, sending the duo tumbling onto the floor. The musky smell of the freshly cleaned floor barely registered in her mind as she squirmed beneath Natsu's comfortably warm bo- _what am I thinking?! _she shrieked to herself. _This is Natsu of all people! But...there is no denying he is pretty cute..._

She stopped herself before those thoughts could go anywhere else. I mean, this was her partner, her best friend! She wasn't allowed to think such things about him!

Mira watched the two struggle on the floor with a secretive smile; inside she was screeching happily. Now, for phase 2! "Hey you two, there was apparently a part of reward for your last mission you didn't pick up."

They instantly stopped, and she knew she had this one in the bag. With a proud lilt of her lips, she explained, "there were also tickets to our in-town amusement park."

"Oh cool!" Natsu cheered, grinning at his friend, who also seemed to brighten up at the aspect of a day out at an amusement park. Of course, he was completely forgetting about the roller-coasters, but Lucy was too, so there was really no one who wanted to remind him. Mira was too busy picturing all the cuddling as they both screamed in terror (Natsu won't barf, right?), and Happy was thought it would bring him a good laugh.

Accepting the tickets with words of thanks, the duo walked out, oblivious to the repeated appearance of Mira's demonic smile.

* * *

Jellal knocked on the door with the inscription of 'Erza Scarlet' on it, rocking on the balls of his feet awkwardly. The trek up to Erza's room was nothing short of uncomfortable, for he had been on the receiving end of a lot of stares. Of course, Mystogan's outfit would certainly get him quite a few looks...the ridiculous pants were horrible.

"Who is it?" Erza wasn't taking any chances, not today. Hugging the pillow close to her scantily dressed chest, she stared at the door, her hand inching towards the sword that stood beside her nightstand. She knew there was a handful of the hiding mages that could take on Mira if need be; for example, herself, Laxus and Gajeel could perfectly well trash the woman and get away before they were murdered.

"It's me, Erza." The deep baritone was unmistakable. It was the same voice that constantly haunted her dreams, forcing her to wake up in the middle of the night burning and shivering at the same time. The same voice that broke her heart with one statement, one rejection.

She couldn't believe it; Mira would go so far?! "_Mira, I swear to god I will skewer you, sit you on fire and feed you to Natsu if you don't drop it!_"

Jellal was...confused, to say the least. And to be honest, more than a little frightened for his life. How was he to prove he was the legitimate Jellal if he had to? "W-What? Erza it's me! Mira-san sent a message to me telling me you were injured and so I..." he trailed off, realizing how stupid he sounded. He'd come for what, the fact she was injured? Sweating profusely underneath the many layers, he coughed, unsure if at this point he could just _leave_.

She blinked, hitting herself with the pillow from underneath her arm. Of course Mira would set something like this up; she was the mastermind of matchmaking. She _would_ go so far. Sighing, she threw off the blankets that were wrapped around her legs and headed over to the door, stretching her arms over her head to wake herself up.

Completely forgetting about her nightgown.

Opening her door, she was pleasantly surprised to see it really was Jellal, here in flesh and bone. Smiling widely, she opened the door further, letting the man in, before closing it after him, re-bolting the door the way it was beforehand. "Sorry Jellal, you were misinformed."

Said man walked in, taking in the luxurious looks of the loft his childhood love (and, if he was being honest with himself, current love) lived in. Rich carpets paired with thick, silken drapes, and a lot of space. From what he could count, there was at least 3 doors, as well. At the sound of her apology, though, he whirled around to face her mid-inspection, startled, and got an eyeful of what she was wearing.

_Ah, shit._

Erza was thinking precisely the same thing.

Frozen in time, all the blue-haired mage could take in was the _extremely _thin white, translucent satin that stuck perfectly to her every curve, barely reaching past her butt. Its ends were covered in pretty blue lace; the gown was sleeveless and was all but slipping off her form, revealing too much for him to keep appropriate eye contact with the redheaded beauty.

_And god damn it she wasn't wearing anything underneath._

Erza could only stand there and watch nervously as Jellal's eyes travelled down her form almost hungrily (later she'd realized she had been in denial and he really had been eating up what he was seeing), burning her wherever his gaze fell. What felt like a millennium later, and with what could only be described as difficulty, Jellal locked eyes with her again, swallowing painfully. _Well, _he thought to himself, _at least she's not injured._ "Er, misinformed?"

She nodded, a little apprehensive as to what he was going to say to her. Well, that, and the fact she was standing here wearing practically nothing. "Well, you see, Mira's our demonic matchmaker. Um, and every Valentine's Day, her tendencies get out of hand..."

"And that's why you or any of the others weren't at the guild...you were all hiding from her?" Jellal threw in, taking off the face mask to distract his hands. It was too warm in here for him to wear it and not sweat. Shaking his head, he let his hair fall back into their original shape. Erza could only watch, his mouth dry.

"Well basically," she moved over back to where her bed was, slipping under the covers so that her legs were covered. He couldn't help but let out a small breath of relief; that had been too much skin for his sanity (yet he'd been 'blessed' with the sight of her bare back as well; the dress was _backless_). Against the better judgement of the logical, sensible part of his mind, the treacherous part had been wanting for him to run his hands along the smooth, creamy plains, and possibly further up under h-

Shaking his head, he glared at the floor and tried to get his thoughts in check, but to no avail; the woman in front of him (on a bed, _dear god_), was too enticing for him not to burn with desire whenever he was with her.

If only he knew Erza was having the same trouble as he was.

Her thoughts could only stray to how incredibly handsome he looked, his features illuminated by the dim sunlight filtering through the drapes. Even draped in Mystogan's ridiculous getup, his masculinity wept through, calling to her like the song of a siren. Realizing he was still standing, and that the silence had stretched on for at least a few minutes, she beckoned for him to come join her on the bed.

With difficulty, and convincing himself they couldn't do anything that would go against their friendship act, he walked over and sat beside her, the pants making it exceedingly difficult. Smiling softly, she chuckled when she realized he was absentmindedly pouting.

"Are you doing okay?" She began the conversation, breaking the comforting silence that cloaked them as they sat lost in their own thoughts about the person beside them. "The council bothering you?"

He shook his head, letting the corner of his lips turn upwards as he shook his head, turning to face his childhood friend. It had been a while since they had a conversation that didn't revolve with their professional business concerning dark guilds and threats to their country. It was nice, being able to talk to her again without having to discuss strategies and tactics and whatnot; it was nice to just be themselves for once, no matter for what length of time. "No, they haven't caught on yet. Or they have, and the bastards rather sit back and let us do all the work."

She frowned. She knew that the trio had issues with accepting forgiveness for what they'd done in their pasts, but this was too much. Nobody deserved to be the outlaws yet be abused by the fact that they were overpowered by shallow, lazy people who had insatiable thirsts for power and money. "And you and the other two are okay with that?"

He sighed. Erza's stubbornness always came out at the wrongest times, over the wrongest matters. Could she just not accept that they were not destined a happy ending? That had been one of his main reasons for lying to her, damn it; he didn't deserve such an amazing, soulful angel. He could only hope she'd find happiness in someone else. He'd have to suck it up and smile for her despite how much he dreaded the day it would happen. It hurt bad enough, having so much to say but not being able to say it, but having to watch his love fall for someone else? "Well, it's not in our power to do anything about it, Erza. And we must atone for our sins..." he trailed off.

Erza pulled up her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around them and surrendering herself to the vulnerable position. She had so many things she could say to that, but what would be the right choice? A choice that wouldn't include the current state of her own heart, which was filled with turmoil and despair? "You've done more than enough, Jellal. Seven years worth of exterminating dark guilds?"

"It's not enough Erza," his voice was quiet; this was dangerous territory they were treading into. This was where, last time, everything had been thrown onto the table only to be squashed under the pressure of their pasts. More specifically his past, filled with lies and destruction that he'd made, and caused. "It'll probably never be enough."

"That's ridiculous," angered by their circumstances and the unjust prejudice of the world, she got onto her knees and turned to face him, a light burning in her eyes. The 'dress' she was wearing slipped further down, but she paid no heed. "You three are three of the best people I know, and you've changed! You can't still believe you deserve the pain of isolation Jellal!"

At some point, her arms had made an appearance, and had flown around as her frustration got the best of her. And at another point in time, his own, bigger hands had reached out to clasp hers, stilling them and effectively silencing her. Locking eyes, they communicated, effectively getting their pain, anger and sadness across. She slid down, letting her full weight hit the bed, before slumping her shoulders; why was it _always _them? No matter the situation, it was always them that had their heart slashed and left to bleed dry.

Jellal watched with depressive eyes as his love quivered from her stop between his legs, reaching a breaking point after a long war full of pain and heartache. Who was he to deny her want she wanted? She deserved the world, if that was what she wanted.

Maybe it was the heat that was suddenly radiating off of their bodies. Maybe it was the fact that they were both suddenly emotionally exhausted, and ready to give up on the world they lived in. Or possibly the fact that they were tired of pretending they didn't feel something more than friendly affection for each other, that they didn't feel a deep kind of love that they were tired of reigning in. A love that burned brighter that anything else they've ever known, a flame that they had to stop attempting to tame. Who was there to please by denying each other?

But suddenly Erza was wrapped up in Jellal arms as tightly as he could hold her and was clinging onto him as if he was her lifeline, which in a sense he was. They revelled in each other's heat, gladly lapping up whatever they could before their time was cut short. Let the world come and try to blow out their flame; they'll laugh in their faces and fight against them. For their love deserved no restraints, and deserved to be nurtured after a lifetime of confusion. They'd seen and faced horrors, they'd done things they weren't proud of, but nobody was perfect, and to each other they were perfectly imperfect.

"Erza..." the hoarse whisper was a plead for this to be real, for her not to be playing him like a finely tuned violin. At this point, after finally having the privilege of holding her and basking in her intoxicating scent, he really wouldn't be able to let her go if she were to pull away now.

But she wasn't listening to what he was saying. She was too busy pulling on the restraining layers of cloth, taking everything off until he was left in the chest bandages and the simplistic underpants. He watched her, a little unsure of what her final goal was; however, when she was done, she moved closer, straddling him and pulling the black sheets up to cover their bodies, hiding their bodies away from the world, save for their heads. Away from the praying eyes of those who were against them. Away from _anything_ that could stop them.

It was a moment of weakest, they both knew. But maybe at this point, a moment of weakness was exactly what they both needed. A push in the direction they yearned for.

Gazing at him with soft, tender eyes, she whispered, "Jellal, I may not be able to convince you that you are no longer who you were 7 years ago. I may not be able to convince you that you should stay here, with my guild. But may I convince you that no matter where you go, I will always be yours?"

Her words, her question, resolved their standstill issue of whether or not to continue with this; as if a dam was broken, he surged forward and capture her lips in a needy embrace, to which she replied by liberating his chest and grabbing fistfuls of hair. Passion flowing through their veins, they fought for control, neither side giving in. This moment was worth every doubt, every heartache, and every nightly tear shed for their love. This was what was missing from their lives, and they'll be damned if anybody were to try and take this away from them now.

When air was needed, they broke apart, panting and holding each other near. Letting their foreheads rest against each other, Jellal closed his eyes and smiled, with his mouth still open. Erza's form was pressed against him, lust filling his mind like a hazy fog. "And I'll always be yours."

Clashing again, he let his instincts take over; running his fingers up her sides, he traced her figure, causing her to gasp and squirm under his touch. She retaliated right after her shock dissipated, though, by slipping her nimble fingers under each individual layer of bandages, pulling the taut material until it ripped under her tutelage. Less than five minutes later, the man was in nothing but his pants, his lean muscles exposed to her touch.

They locked eyes again, and in that single moment, their decision was made. Falling against the sheets, they continued their climb into oblivion.

Together. Just as they always had.

* * *

_There'll be pain_

_There'll be angst_

_We'll fight it all_

_We'll soar to the heavens_

_This love is more than physical_

_This love runs deeps within our hearts_

_It fuels our will to live_

_It encompasses our souls_

_When we're together, my love_

_Not even the gods can stop us_

_Together we are unbreakable_

_We are unshakable_

_We are one._

* * *

**A/N: Guys this is over 4,000 words this is literally the longest thing I've ever written? SHOWER ME WITH LOVE. I'm kidding, but I'd love to see what you thought of it! :D Leave a review or two?**

**Concerning my Jerza drabble-fics, they've been put on hold because as of late, I've had no time at all to write. And in my spare time, I'm working on something for a friend (And this consumed the last week of my life). My fanfics are one of my top priorities, and I'll attempt to get something up ASAP! I'm sorry to keep you all waiting!**


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